A storage server is a processing system that is used to store and retrieve data on behalf of one or more computing systems (also referred to as “hosts” or host computing systems) in a network. The storage server operates on behalf of computer systems to store and manage data in a set of mass storage devices, e.g., magnetic or optical storage-based disks, solid state devices, or tapes. Some storage servers are designed to service file-level requests from hosts, as is commonly the case with file servers used in network attached storage (NAS) environments. Other storage servers are designed to service block-level requests from hosts, as with storage controllers used in a storage area network (SAN) environment. Still other storage servers are capable of servicing both file-level requests and block-level requests.
In order to evaluate and improve storage server (or storage system) performance, it is helpful to collect data regarding workloads that are handled by the storage server. The term workload as used herein means processing of input/output (I/O) requests for reading and writing information from and to storage devices. Continuous efforts are being made to efficiently collect workload information.